Manuscripts Collection Reader Guide 4
THE PAPYRUS COLLECTIONS
CONTENTS
1.
INTRODUCTION
2.
THE CATALOGUES
3.
OSTRACA
4.
HOW TO REQUEST PAPYRI
5.
NEW TESTAMENT PAPYRI
6.
A NOTE ABOUT MULTI-PART PAPYRI
7.
FACSIMILES OF PAPYRI
8.
EXHIBITED PAYRI
9.
PAPYRUS FRAGMENTS
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1. Introduction
Almost all surviving papyri have been recovered by archaeological
excavation, and almost all of them in Egypt. Many have been excavated
and published by the Egypt Exploration Society from sites at Oxyrhynchus,
Hibeh, Tebtunis and the Fayum. The papyri from these sites were distributed
after publication to institutions all over the world. Undistributed papyri are
kept at the Papyrology Rooms of the Sackler Library, Oxford, to which
enquiries about them should be directed. The collections of papyri in the
Manuscript Collections of the British Library consist of Greek and a few Latin
papyri. Papyri in Egyptian languages, e.g. hieroglyphics and demotic are
preserved in the Department of Egyptian Antiquities of the British Museum.
Coptic papyri are in the Asia, Pacific & Africa Collections of the British Library
(consult the W.E. Crum Catalogue of the Coptic Manuscripts in the British
Museum London, 1905, and B. Layton, A Catalogue of Coptic Literary
Manuscripts in the British Library acquired since the year 1906, London
1987. (A few Coptic papyri which also contain Greek were, however,
transferred from Asia, Pacific & Africa Collections to the Manuscript
Collections and re-numbered after the publication of Crum's catalogue, see
section 2 below). Papyri in Arabic, Aramaic, and Pahlavi are also in Asia,
Pacific & Africa Collections.
Papyri in this department are numbered from Papyrus 1 onwards. These
numbers are also known as inventory numbers. Egerton Papyri form a
separate sequence. The British Library uses the collection names Papyrus
(sometimes abbreviated to Pap.) and Egerton Papyrus (Eg. Pap.) followed by
the Papyrus or inventory number. International convention, however,
sometimes uses P for Papyrus followed by an abbreviation representing the
location and a catalogue or page number e.g. P. Lond. 1420 or P. Lond.
xxxiii, or P. Lond. I, p.234. These numbers must be converted to British
Library inventory numbers before the correct papyrus can be requested.
Details of how to convert from these internationally used catalogue numbers
and page numbers to numbers used in this department can be found in
Section 4 of this Reader Guide, ‘How to request Papyri’.
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2. The Catalogues
The catalogues of papyri are as follows. Most of the catalogue entries
include an edition of the text. Note that not all of the inventory numbers
between the first and last numbers shown are necessarily included in that
catalogue. Where the catalogue numbers and inventory numbers differ, the
inventory number is the same as our papyrus number. This is explained in
more detail in Section 4, ‘How to request Papyri’.
Catalogue of the Literary Papyri in the British Museum, ed. by H. J. M.
Milne, London, 1927.
Catalogue numbers P. Lit. 1-257
Inventory numbers 1-2485, Egerton Pap. 1
Greek Papyri in the British Museum:
Vol. I. Ed. by F. G. Kenyon. London, 1893; reprinted Milan, 1973.
Includes Greek papyri acquired up to 1890. The catalogue numbers are
the same as the inventory numbers.
Catalogue and inventory numbers 1-131
Vol. II. Ed. by F. G. Kenyon. London, 1898; reprinted Milan, 1973.
Includes Greek papyri acquired from 1891 to 1895.
The catalogue numbers are the same as the inventory numbers.
Catalogue and inventory numbers 139-484
Vol III. Ed. by F. G. Kenyon and H. I. Bell. London, 1907; reprinted
Milan, 1973. Includes Greek papyri acquired from 1896 to 1903.
The catalogue numbers are the same as the inventory numbers.
Catalogue and inventory numbers 485-1331
Vol. IV. The Aphrodito Papyri, ed. by H. I. Bell, with an appendix of
Coptic papyri ed by W. E. Crum. London, 1910; reprinted Milan, 1973.
Includes the collection of papyri from Aphrodito [Kôm Ishgau] acquired
in 1903 and 1906.
Catalogue numbers 1332-1646
Inventory numbers 1332-1560, 1749-1753
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Vol V. Ed. by H. I. Bell. London, 1917; reprinted Milan, 1973. Includes
Greek papyri acquired in 1906 and 1907.
Catalogue numbers 1647-1911
Inventory numbers 1520-1820, 1858
[Vol VI] Jews and Christians in Egypt. Ed. by H. I. Bell. With three
Coptic texts ed. by W. E. Crum. London, 1924.
Catalogue numbers 1912-1929
Inventory numbers 2248-2549
Vol VII. The Zenon Archive. Ed. by T. C. Skeat. London, 1974.
Catalogue numbers 1930-2193
Inventory numbers 610, 1912-2907, 3081
Fragments of an unknown Gospel and other early Christian Papyri. Ed. by
H. I. Bell and T. C. Skeat. London, 1935.
Catalogue numbers P. Lond. Christ 1-4
Inventory numbers Egerton Pap. 2-5
Location list of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri ... compiled by R. A. Coles, London
1974. Lists the British Library's holdings of Oxyrhynchus Papyri with their
British Library inventory numbers.
In addition to the above, Papyri 37-2922 are briefly described in the printed
Catalogues of Additions, 1836-1955, and Egerton Papyri 1-36 in the printed
Catalogues of Additions for 1931 - 1945. These catalogues should be used
to find papyri acquired after the publication of the catalogues listed above.
A few Coptic papyri which also contain Greek which were transferred to the
Manuscript Collection from Asia, Pacific & Africa Collections and renumbered in our sequence of Papyri can be found by referring to these
Catalogues of Additions by the year the transfer occurred. A few Coptic
papyri, which also contain Greek remain at Asia, Pacific & Africa Collections.
There is no separate published catalogue of our few Latin papyri, but
information concerning them can be found in Robert Cavenaile, Corpus
papyorum latinarum, Wiesbaden, 1956-8, and Albert Bruckner and Robert
Marichal, Chartae latinae antiquores, Otten and Lausanne, 1954, which can
be consulted in the Humanities Reading Room (floor 1).
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3. Ostraca
About 4000 ostraca (potsherds with writing) in Greek were transferred to
the British Library from the Department of Egyptian Antiquities of the British
Museum in 1932, 1933 and 1967, and still retain the inventory numbers
allotted to them in that Department. They are numbered 5790-63859
although not all of the numbers between these are in the Manuscript
Collections, as the Department of Egyptian Antiquities retain those that are
not in Greek (eg in demotic). There are also 15 Egerton ostraca.
There is no printed catalogue of the ostraca, but three hundred of them
were published in Ulrich Wilcken, Griechische Ostraka aus Aegypten und
Nubien, 2 vols. Leipzig and Berlin, 1899. Staff library only. Copy available in
the Humanities Reading Room (floor 1).
4. How to request Papyri
Remember that when requesting a papyrus, the collection name is Papyrus
(sometimes abbreviated to Pap.) or Egerton Papyrus (sometimes Eg. Pap.)
followed by the papyrus number. International conventions of referring to
papyri may involve converting such references (e.g. P. Lond. 1420) to our
Papyrus numbers (e.g. Papyrus 1441). The method of conversion for each
of the catalogues described in Section 2 above is indicated below. Note,
however, that numbers preceded by P. inv. or B. M. inv. or B. L. inv. are
inventory numbers and therefore need no conversion, although the
collection name should be written as Papyrus followed by the papyrus
number.
P. Lond: refers to the Catalogue of Greek Papyri in the British Museum,
(described more fully in section 2 above). Where the catalogue and
inventory numbers differ, convert the catalogue numbers (in bold figures) to
the inventory numbers (in light figures) in the following way:
(a) Vols. I-III: Reference to papyri in these volumes is usually made by
volume number and page number, e.g. P. Lond. I, p. 234, because the
entries are arranged chronologically, not in numerical order. Where the
page number and catalogue number conflict, the page number is likely
to be correct. In these catalogues, the catalogue number is the same as
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the inventory number, which is also the same as the Papyrus number,
e.g. P. Lond. I, xxxiii = Pap. 33. The papyri in the first two volumes are
numbered with roman numerals.
(b) In Vols. IV-VII, the catalogue number has to be converted to an
inventory number by consulting the volume, e.g. P. Lond. IV, 1333 =
Pap. 1333, but P. Lond. 1420 = Pap. 1441. Remember to convert
catalogue to inventory numbers, not the inventory to catalogue
numbers, and to replace the word inventory by Papyrus when making a
request.
P. Jews. (Also called P. Lond. VI.) refers to H. I. Bell, Jews and Christians in
Egypt ... illustrated by texts from Greek Papyri in the British Museum,
1924. The catalogue numbers continue from P. Lond. V, e.g. P. Jews 1912 =
Pap. 2248 verso. See section 2 above.
P. Abinn. refers to The Abinnaeus Archive, edited by H. I. Bell, V. Martin, E.
G. Turner, D. van Berchem, Oxford 1962. Staff library only. Copy available
in the Humanities Reading Room (floor 1). Concordance on p. xiii (e.g. P.
Abinn. 1 = P. London. 447, which is Pap. 447).
P. Oxy. refers to Grenfell, Hunt, et al, The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, 60 vols. (to
1993) London, 1898 -. Reference is usually made in the form of P. Oxy.
2477 (=Pap. 3060) or P. Oxy. IV 659 (= Pap. 1533). The correct reference
to our Papyrus number can be found by consulting R. A. Coles, Location list
of the Oxychynchus Papyri, London, 1974. If necessary, the departmental
copies of The Oxyrhynchus Papyri [which have manuscript annotations of
present locations up to Vol. XIV, and thereafter of B. M. (B. L.) papyri only]
can be consulted by staff. A set is also available in the Humanities Reading
Room (floor 1).
P. Tebt. refers to Tebtunis Papyri, Grenfell, Hunt and Smyly, Vols. I, II, III.1,
III.2., IV, Oxford, 1902-76. Staff library only. Copy available in the
Humanities Reading Room (floor 1).
P. Hib. refers to Hibeh Papyri, 2 Vols. (Vol. I, Grenfell and Hunt; Vol. II,
Turner and Lenger), London, 1906. Staff library only. Copy available in the
Humanities Reading Room (floor 1). Consult R. A. Coles, Location list of
Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
5
P. Fay. refers to Fayum Towns and their Papyri, Grenfell, Hunt and
Hogarth, London, 1990. Staff library only. Copy available in the
Humanities Reading Room (floor 1). Consult R. A. Coles, Location list of
Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
P. Lit. Lond. refers to H. J. M. Milne, Catalogue of the Literary Papyri in the
British Museum, London 1927. See section 2, above.
P. Lond. Christ. refers to H. I. Bell and T. C. Skeat, Fragments of an
unknown Gospel and other early Christian Papyri, London, 1935. See
section 2, above.
Papyri with inventory numbers between 10,000 and 13,000 will be found in
the Department of Egyptian Antiquities if they are in the British Museum.
For papyri with numbers between 01 and 02651, see section 9, Papyrus
fragments, at the end of this leaflet.
5. New Testament papyri
International convention refers to many of the most important New
Testament papyri by the letter P followed by a small superscript number,
e.g. P18. For those papyri which are housed here, these references must be
converted to our Papyrus numbers. Thus P18 = British Library Papyrus
2053. Several of the most authoritative books about New Testament papyri
include a location register or concordance from the international reference to
the reference used in the library where the papyrus is housed (usually with
bibliographical references to published editions of the text) including the
following. Those marked with an asterisk are currently available in the
Manuscripts Reading Room. The remainder may be consulted in the
Humanities Reading Room (floor 1).
*
Bruce M Metzger, The Text of the New Testament, 2nd ed., Oxford,
1968. Concordance on pp. 247-256. (This concordance was omitted
from the 3rd edition of 1992.) Covers P1 - P76 and includes notes
concerning P77 - P81.
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F. G. Kenyon, The Text of the Greek Bible, 3rd ed., London, 1975.
Concordance on pp. 67-77. Covers P1 - P75 with some omissions.
*
Kurt & Barbara Aland, The Text of the New Testament, Grand Rapids
and Leiden, 2nd ed., 1989. Concordance on pp. 96-102. (in German
ed. of 1982, pp.106-111). Covers P1 - P96.
*
Philip W. Comfort, Early Manuscripts & Modern Translations of the
New Testament, Wheaton, Illinois, 1990. Concordance on pp. 32-71.
Covers P1 - P95.
*
Eberhard & Erwin Nestle, revised Kurt Aland, et al, Nestle-Aland Novum
Testamentum Graece, 26th ed., Stuttgart, 1979. Concordance on pp.
684-689. Covers P1 - P88. [27th ed., 1993, pp. 684-689,
P1-98]
*
Kurt Aland, Kurzgefasste Liste der Griechischen Handschriften des
Neuen Testaments, I. Gesamtübersicht, 2nd ed., Berlin, 1994,
Concordance on pp. 3-16. Covers P1 - P99.
Kurt Aland, Repertorium der Griechischen Christlichen Papyri I,
Biblische Papyri, Berlin and NY, 1976. See forward, page 9.
Covers P1 - P88.
Joseph van Haelst, Catalogue des Papyrus Littéraires, Juifs et Chrétiens,
Paris, 1976. Concordance on pp. 379-380 . Covers P1
6. A note about multi-part papyri
Many papyri have been divided into several different parts or frames. Note
that a separate ticket is required for each part. In some cases however, the
published catalogue description does not indicate the separate parts. In
these cases staff can show readers copies of the departmental location lists
which indicate the number of frames for each papyrus. Some frames
contain fragments from more than one papyrus. This is usually also shown
in the departmental location lists.
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7. Facsimiles of papyri
*
Greek Papyri in the British Museum. Facsimiles. Vol. I, London 1893.
Plates of all the papyri of which the texts are printed in Greek Papyri in
the British Museum, Vol. I.
Papyrus 1 - Papyrus 131.
*
Greek Papyri in the British Museum. Facsimiles. Vol. II, London, 1898.
Plates of the papyri of which the texts are printed in Greek Papyri in the
British Museum, Vol. II.
Papyrus 139 - Papyrus 483.
*
Greek Papyri in the British Museum. Facsimiles. Vol. III, London, 1907.
Plates of the papyri of which the texts are printed in Greek Papyri in the
British Museum, Vol. III, with the addition of five Aphrodito papyri.
Papyrus 604 - Papyrus 1371.
MS Facsimile 5, vols. I-III
Another set of the facsimile series listed above.
MS Facsimile 2
Aristotle's Consitution of Athens (Pap. 131v) ed F.G. Kenyon, London,
1891
MS Facsimile 3
Herodas (Pap. 135) ed. F.G. Kenyon, London, 1892
MS Facsimile 4
Bacchylides (Pap. 733) ed. F.G. Kenyon, London, 1898
*
Catalogue of Ancient Manuscripts in the British Museum, Part I, Greek,
by E. Maunde Thompson & G. F. Warner, London, 1881.
Includes plates of Papyri 37, 98, 107, 108, 114, 115.
*
Facsimiles of Biblical Manuscripts in the British Museum, by F. G.
Kenyon, London, 1900. Includes Papyrus 2
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8. Exhibited papyri
Usually, there is always an example of papyri exhibited in the
Sir John Ritblat Gallery.
9. Papyrus fragments
Fragments of papyri, when assembled and framed, are assigned a number
between 01 and 02651, although only a few have so far been so treated.
For a brief description of the fragments, see T. S. Pattie, ‘A Little-known
collection of papyri in the British Library' in Proceedings of the XVIII
International Congress of Papyrology 1986, vol. 1, Athens, 1988,
pp. 147-150 (= departmental pamphlet no. 3746).
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